


Twilight Moon Beams

by Slythindor07



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling, Lana Del Rey (Musician)
Genre: Adult Harry, Adult Hermione Granger, Age Difference, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Ilvermorny, POV Hermione Granger, Post-Battle of Hogwarts, Post-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Remus Lupin Lives, Severus Snape Lives, Sirius Black Free from Azkaban, Sirius Black Lives, Sirius Black's Flying Motorbike, hermione granger singer, lounge singer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-16
Updated: 2020-01-16
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:24:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22276255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slythindor07/pseuds/Slythindor07
Summary: When Hermione leaves to Ilvermorny to attend her last year of school the events there change her life forever. Can she handle all the changes and crushing on her Sirius Black at the same time? Innocent flirting could lead to so much more especially when you haven't seen the person in over a year. Age-gap fic. Singer Hermione. Hermione is in her twenties. The war lasted a couple of years longer.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Original Male Character(s), Sirius Black/Hermione Granger
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28
Collections: Twilight Moonbeams





	1. The Most Noble House of Black is extinct No More

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! This fanfic is based on one of my favorite songs by Lana Del Rey. I do not own anything from the world of Harry Potter or any of the referenced music within this story. The following is an AU where Snape, Lupin, and Fred survived. Also, Remus Is not married. This is an Age gap fic, Regarding a woman of legal age (19) with an older man (36). If this bothers you, then this is not the story for you.

May 3rd, 1998  
"Hermione! Ron!" Yelled Harry as he bounded through the halls of 12 Grimmauld Place on his way towards the kitchen where his best friends were seated, muttering to each other over their breakfast. Harry slid in an attempt to make it into the room quickly and fell in front of the large table opposite of his two friends. 

"Harry!" they yelled in unison, concern etched onto their faces. They both stood up quickly and peered over the table, to make sure their best friend was alright. Whatever it was that made him rush in there had to be important, he was only wearing one sock and his boxer shorts. 

"'m fine," He got out quickly, still laying flat on his back. He threw a clenched fist into the air, a piece of parchment held firmly in his grasp. "Read it!" he groaned the pain of the fall finally getting to him.

Hermione reached across and plucked the letter out of his hand, slightly amused and worried with the state of her half-naked best friend, and began to read, Ron peering over her shoulder.

Mr. Potter,

We are writing to inform you that into the late hours of yesterday evening, a one Sirius Black has been cast out of the veil, as the head of the House of Black, we request your audience urgently. Please visit the department of mysteries as soon as possible, an unspeakable will give you the full briefing regarding our next course of action. 

Ministry of Magic  
Department of Mysteries division.

Hermione and Ron looked at Harry, who had since gotten to his feet.  
"He's alive! Sirius, he's back!" the young man looked as though he were about to cry.  
"Blimey," Ron muttered, "Can you believe it."  
"If anything, it is amazing. I am so glad, Harry." Said Hermione.

Hermione was skeptical that Sirius was indeed alive, as they had not given them verification that he was living. She decided that she was not about to be the needle that burst her best friend's ballon of delight and kept her thoughts to herself. Merlin knew he needed some happiness after everything he had been through.

"Could you come with me?" Harry asked Hermione, knowing that Ron was heading to the burrow to check on how Fred's leg was doing, it had gotten crushed from debris caused by a wall exploding during the battle.

"Of course!" She replied this was the perfect distraction to the horrible events that happened the previous day. Harry smiled and gave her a hug before quickly pulling away, remembering his state of undress. He muttered an apology, and they went their separate ways to get ready for the day to come.

They arrived at the Ministry just after 10:30 in the morning. The place was in shambles but was already well on its way to being repaired. They made their way down towards the department of Mysteries in silence. Both extremely nervous about what was to happen. 

They entered the Department of Mysteries, and an unspeakable motioned for them to follow as soon as he caught a glimpse of Harry. He lead them down a narrow corridor to a room at the end of the hall, and the door swung open, revealing a healer. She seemed exhausted,  
"He appears to be fine, not a single thing wrong with him. It was as though he had been frozen in time for the past two years. No curses found he seems to be in perfectly good health. Now if you will excuse me, I am needed elsewhere." She said curtly. The unspeakable nodded and dismissed her, she did not spare a single glance towards the golden duo as she rushed down the hall, no doubt on her way back to St. Mungos.

The unspeakable motioned for them to enter the room, and Hermione watched as Harry's eyes grew wide. There, sitting at a rather large desk, reading what appeared to be the current issue of the Daily Prophet was none other than Sirius Black. 

"Sirius!" called Harry, who was still rooted at the spot near the now-closed door. And the man himself looked up in surprise, a grin spread across his face as he stood from his place at the desk and hurried towards his godson, Harry meet him halfway with tears in his eyes, he hugged his godfather tightly as though he feared he would disappear before their eyes. Hermione stood quietly, not wanting to ruin this moment; her own eyes glistened with tears as she witnessed their reunion. 

"I'm so proud of you, Harry, so utterly proud." Said Sirius with a crackling voice as tears slid silently down his cheeks. "I read all about it in the Prophet and heard from a couple ministry workers, You did it, Harry. It is finally over. He's gone."

Hermione watched as Harry shook with sobs, they stayed like that for a while before the Unspeakable briefed them and allowed them to leave. Sirius looked as though he were about to cry once again when he was informed that everyone now knew he was, in fact, innocent. He was finally truly free, in a world where Voldemort no longer existed, and while the boy known as Harry Potter was now most certainly a man, Hermione was sure he would do his damnedest to be there for him going forward. Nothing was going to stop him now. 

-  
The three flooed back to Grimmauld Place, Hermione, who was last to go through brushed the soot off of herself.  
"Welcome back, Sirius," Hermione said with a smile. He smiled quickly in return. "Good to be back."  
Sirius looked around his old childhood home with a slight grimace on his face. "We'll need to redecorate," He said more to himself than anyone else, "Well, I don't know about you lot, but I am famished. I guess floating around in the veil for two years will do that. What do you say to all of us going for a bite to eat?"

-  
The days turned into weeks, and living with Sirius was nothing like living with a parental figure. Not that Hermione would ever view him that way herself, but he was just different. Grimmauld Place looked altered entirely; they had spent a week following his return redecorating the whole space. The house was now bright and airy, it looked nothing like it once had. 

The news of his return and innocence shook the already fragile wizarding community to its core, many magazines took to writing gossip articles about Sirius. Others took to writing about his status as one of the most eligible bachelors of England. A picture of him walking around Diagon Alley had made the front page of witch weekly and, in turn, lead to a myriad of letters from potential suitors asking, or shall we say begging to be courted.

Sirius scoffed at the letters and threw them all into the fireplace.  
"I am just getting my life back, I think a bit of freedom would suffice."  
Hermione chuckled, she couldn't really blame the girls for trying, she had to admit Sirius was an extremely handsome man. Although, she would never say that out loud.

-

Sirius had been back for nearly two and a half months, and during that time, he and Hermione had gotten pretty close. You could blame it on the fact that he was allowing her to stay at his home and subsequently meant he saw her every day or because she always sat in his study with him reading while he worked one whatever it was that needed tending, but Hermione knew different.

The shift happened a few weeks prior when she was sure everyone had gone to bed, she broke down on the chaise in Sirius's study, her usual seat. She cried over her disgusting scar, for her parents, the failure of her relationship with Ron, and for the ones that were lost too soon.

Sirius had found her that night, and she still doesn't know what made her tell him all of her troubles. She told him things she had never even told Harry, He had listened to everything she had said, and he expressed his hatred towards one Bellatrix Lestrange, the witch who had carved that word onto her arm. He held her until sobs ebbed, and he walked her to her room, which just so happened to be across the hall from his, making her promise to talk to him should she ever feel lost again. She pulled him in for a quick hug, and with a nod of her head, she agreed.


	2. Accepted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the short chapters!

August 1st, 1998

They were all sat at the breakfast table when Ron came in with the post. Hermione smiled and thanked him when he handed her the letter that came for her. Her relationship with Ron recently had been rather stiff, ever since their break up a month prior, but Hermione was grateful they were able to remain as friends, especially since he was staying at Grimmauld Place with all of them. She watched as he handed everyone their mail before she finally looked down at the envelope in her hand. It was something she had been waiting for, something only one other person at the table knew about. It was a letter from Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her heart was pounding as she broke the wax seal and began to read.

"I-I got in." She stammered. Two out of the three other occupants of the room looked at her in confusion.

"Got in where?" Questioned Ron in between bites of bacon. Everyone was staring at her now. 

"I sent in a request for transfer; you see, I want to finish up school." She told them. 

"We know that already, Hermione. Arent, you going back to Hogwarts?" Questioned Harry. "I thought you and Ginny had it all planned." 

Hermione cleared her throat before she continued. "Well, you see, I got accepted into Ilvermorny to finish my last year of school. They hardly ever take in transfers, especially ones spending their final year there, but they were so impressed by my academic achievements that they made an exception." She looked over at Sirius, who smiled widely and motioned for her to continue. She had spoken to him about this in private, and he knew how much this meant to her. 

"But 'Mione isn't that the Wizarding School in America!?" Said Ron, dropping his fork in shock. "What's the point, just go to Hogwarts."

"Yeah, I don't see the point of going all the way to America to just finish your last year of school, it makes no sense." Replied Harry, still looking concerned.

Sirius clapped his hands together to stop their ramblings. "Now, boys, I believe we should allow Hermione to finish exactly what It was she wanted to say." She gave him a look of gratitude and continued.

"As much as I love Hogwarts," she swallowed, "The cuts are too fresh, I'm not ready to go back there, especially on my own." Harry made to cut her off, but she raised a hand. "Let me finish, I know Ginny is going to be there, but we have never been exceptionally close. And with both of you about to start Auror training, It is not as though we would have that much time to see each other anyways. This is important to me, I want a year to be free, without thinking about Hogwarts, without the memories of Voldemort echoing through the halls. I want a year to just be a normal nineteen-year-old girl, not the brightest witch of her age, not one-third of the 'golden trio' just plain ole Hermione Granger." 

Harry looked at her for a moment, he seemed to be contemplating what to say. With an intake of breath, he nodded. Ron seemed lost in thought. 

"I understand," Said Harry. "I can't really say I blame you, It's going to be tough without you around for a year. But I- we want you to be happy. And if that's what it will take, then so be it. But remember if you ever want to come back home, we're just a portkey away." He smiled at her before standing up and walking around the table to give her a hug. Ron followed, muttering sadly, "What he said 'Mione." 

"You have always had such a way with words Ronald."She chuckled, eyes glistening. "Thank you both so much for being so understanding."  
her eyes met Sirius's once again, he gave her a telling wink.  
"Congratulations." he mouthed. Hermione smiled and mouthed, "Thank you" in return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all like it!


	3. Lapse In Judgement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things heat up a little!

A week had passed since Hermione received her letter, The nerves were starting to really kick in. She had already gone to Diagon Alley and purchased most of the items she would need for the upcoming school year, but a few things such as specific books and, of course, Ilvermorny robes would have to be purchased in America. She was carefully packing everything up in her trunk when the sound of knocking startled her.

"Come In!" She called, putting in the last few articles of clothing into the trunk. The door swung open, revealing Sirius holding a finely wrapped package in his hand. Hermione stood up, wiping her hands on the front of her shirt. "I thought that this would come in useful." Said Sirius with a smile on his face. Hermione looked a bit nervous as he handed her the gift. "Go on, open it," he said. 

Slowly she untied the bow and let it fall to the floor, the wrapping fell away, revealing a gorgeous wooden box with the brand name embossed in gold-leaf in the center. She heard of this brand once or twice before, a frequent among the affluent society. With slightly shaky hands, she opened the lid and gasped. Laying on the bottom of the velvet-lined interior was the most gorgeous quill she had ever seen. The base was gold, and the grip, which was also gold, was carved in a vine pattern similar to that of her wand. Semi-precious stones were nestled in the center of each leaf, and at the end of the grip came the most gorgeous phoenix feather she had ever seen. "Sirius," she gasped, "It is absolutely beautiful," with a deep breath she sighed and shut the lid. "I can not accept this, it's simply too much." she tried handing the box back to him, but he stopped her, he reached out and covered the hand that held the gift with his own giving it a slight squeeze.  
"You do deserve this, and either way, it was made custom for you, can't exactly take it back." He teased her slightly. "I had it made the day after you told me your plans to go to Ilvermorny. Now, if you would, open the box and turn the quill over." Sirius smiled and pulled away.

Hermione looked up at him with wide eyes, her hand felt cold the moment his hand pulled away from hers. She carefully removed the quill from its case and began inspecting it, as she turned it over she realized her name was engraved across the back of the grip.   
"Swipe a finger across your name." Came Sirius's voice, pulling her out of her trance. she nodded and did as he asked, and for what felt like the millionth time she gasped, the inscription changed; it now read, "I define myself." 

Tears sprang into her eyes and began to slowly slide down her cheeks. Carefully, she placed the quill back into its case and sat it in her trunk before proceeding to pull Sirius into a nearly bone-crushing hug. His smell invaded her senses, her heart swelled with affection towards the man she currently had in her embrace. She felt as his arms wrapped around her, and he began rubbing her back in slow, comforting circles. 

"Shh, you don't need to cry." He whispered to her. He carefully disentangled himself from her grip and held her one arm in his grasp. Sirius pulled up her sleeve, the scar upon her arm on full display. "I want you to always remember that only you can define yourself." Hermione looked at her arm, the tears beginning to slow down. Sirius lifted her chin so that her eyes met his. "Just because someone calls you a name does not mean that is what you are. Fuck all of the absolute arseholes that can not see the person that you are, your blood status does not matter. You are an immensely brave and intelligent woman. You just need to see that for yourself." His eyes willed her to believe his words, and so she did. 

"Thank you so much, Sirius, I truly appreciate everything." She smiled shyly as his thumb wiped the last stray tear from her cheek, their eyes still locked. He smiled in return and muttered something she believed sounded like anytime, but she couldn't be sure with the sound of blood rushing in her ears as a blush started to bloom across her cheeks. He must have realized his hand was still resting upon her face because he went to pull away. Hermione stopped him cupping his hand with her own and reaching out with her other one to hold the back of his neck and pull his face towards hers, their lips met, and Hermione felt as though her insides were melting, but just as quickly as it started, he pulled away. 

Sirius straightened and was about to say something when the sound of the floo echoed through the house. "Hello!" came the voice of Remus Lupin, "Sirius? where are you?" Hermione's eyes went wide, and she watched Sirius wipe the lip gloss from his lips. 

"Coming Moony!" he called back. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I shouldn't have allowed that to happen. It was a momentary lapse of judgment. Please do not think of me as some old creep." He whispered. Sensing his panic, Hermione played along. "Sirius, It's completely alright, I don't know what came over me, but it was my fault. We can just pretend it never happened. It was just a quick thank you peck." She whispered a reply. 

He grinned in relief, letting out a breath she did not realize he was holding and rushed out the door. The moment he was out of sight, Hermione raised her fingers to her lips, the reality of the situation dawned on her. Of three things, she was certain, 1. She was attracted to Sirius Black, 2. She kissed her best friend's godfather, and 3. She most definitely was not going to be forgetting it anytime soon.

When Hermione finally plucked up the courage to come downstairs later that day, it was already sunset. She listened carefully, but there was no sound, she presumed Remus had already left and wondered if Sirius had gone with him. Sighing, Hermione made her way towards the kitchen, the smell of food causing her stomach to growl. Kreacher had already disappeared from the room when she had entered, he was still slightly perturbed she was there but knew better than to say anything. The roast and veggies looked absolutely delightful, still warmed by a heating charm she slowly piled some onto her plate. 

As she made her way to the breakfast table, not wanting to sit in the dining room alone, she began to ponder her impending trip to America. She was nervous but excited, the curriculum was set up quite differently from Hogwarts, and the assortment of classes did not leave anything to be desired. Her thoughts began to drift to one Sirius Black, her lips tingled at the mere thought of him. Hermione chastised herself for crushing on him, but she always had a thing for older men, they were so much more experienced and mature than the young boys her age. She could hardly have an intellectual conversation with Ronald, although she would always love him like a brother. Thinking of Ronald, she wondered how he and Harry were doing with their training, they had been gone all day, and she hoped that they were all right. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she stood up and made a beeline towards the library/Sirius's study to search for a good book. 

As Hermione reached the study, she noticed the door was ajar, and from she could see Sirius sitting at his desk, rubbing his face with his hands looking troubled. She frowned, glad he hadn't noticed her and made her way back towards the kitchen to get him a plate of dinner. She knocked on his door and heard him shuffle before calling for her to enter. Putting on a smile, Hermione walked towards him and set the food on his desk.  
"I brought you some dinner, you never came out to eat." She said, rubbing her arm nervously, looking at the food but not at him.   
"Oh, was it dinnertime already?" Question Sirius, rubbing his face once again. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I lost track of time." She met his eyes and saw the sincerity within them and nodded, feeling better, at least he wasn't ignoring her. 

"Oh, okay." She smiled. "I hoped you weren't ignoring me after you know." she trailed off. Sirius chuckled, shaking his head. 

"Of course, I wasn't ignoring you. A momentary lack of judgment on both of our parts will not ruin the friendship we have built over these past few weeks." He smiled at her. "You are truly a remarkable woman Hermione, and I thank you for spending so much of your time with an old dog like me." He winked, and she laughed. 

"Honestly, a dog pun?" She said in between giggles. Sirius simply shrugged amused by her reaction. "What can I say, It's been ruff lately." Hermione stopped laughing and groaned, He chuckled an eye twinkling before he said, "Now if you'll excuse me I'd like to eat, my stomach is positively growling with hunger."   
"Sirius!" Hermione whined slightly before shaking her head.   
"Woof, I mean, Yes, Miss Granger." He teased  
"Ugh, just never mind." She chuckled, making her way towards the door, "Enjoy your meal."   
"Hermione, wait." She paused, her hand on the doorknob. "Why don't you stay and continue reading that book aloud, like you've been doing the past couple of days."

She smiled while still facing the door and nodded, heading towards the bookshelf and pulling out a novel about a singer who fell in love with an older man that played in her band, and the ordeals they had to overcome. He had caught her reading out loud to herself the other day and insisted she continued since he got hooked by the storyline. She made her way to her usual seat on the chaise, sat down, and began to read. The only sounds that echoed through the room were her voice, the turning of parchment, and the crackling of the fireplace.


	4. Departure

Before she knew it, August 30th had arrived. She shrunk her trunk down and placed it into her trusted beaded bag. With one last look at her room, she turned around and walked out of the door, closing it behind her. She trudged down the stairs, the nerves were getting to her, she just realized she wouldn't know a single person over there. What if she was making a huge mistake? What if nobody liked her? "Calm down, Hermione, It's a little too late for second-guessing yourself." She mumbled. 

Harry and Ron were waiting for her in the front hall to say their goodbyes for the time being. They all hugged and sobbed for a little while before the boys composed themselves, and each gave her a gift telling her to open them when she arrived. To Hermione's surprise, Sirius was nowhere to be seen. "I'm going to miss you both more than anything." She was wiping the stray tears from her cheeks. "Be good, and don't forget to eat healthy things once in a while, especially you, Ron. And Harry, please don't get yourself in over your head, you need to relax a bit, you don't need to be everyone's hero, you've done that. Do what makes you happy. an-" 

"Yes, Hermione." Said both Harry and Ron cutting her off.   
"We'll owl you as often as we can. We want you to take care of yourself." Said Harry, He was about to continue when a familiar voice echoed through the room.  
"And remember, there's always a place for you at Twelve Grimmauld Place, should you need it." Came Sirius's voice. Hermione whipped her head around and rushed towards him, enveloping him in an embrace that rivaled the one Harry had given him. 

"I'm going to miss you so much, Sirius." Hermione took a deep breath, inhaling his scent for the final time. The warm spiciness that was so uniquely Sirius, he smelled like home, and that was enough to make her want to cry again. She pulled away from him, and he held her at arm's length and studied her, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm going to miss you as well, Hermione. My study is going to be a lonely place without you in it." He gave her that all too familiar playful smirk.  
"That reminds me." Said Hermione. "No hiding yourself in the study, you need to get out more, have some fun!"  
Sirius laughed, "Bossy, as ever, never lose your spark, Hermione."  
The clock chimed at 3pm. "I won't, well, I better be off." smiling sadly, Hermione gave Sirius one final hug before turning around to do the same with Harry and Ron, who luckily were oblivious to the embrace that seemed to have lasted just a bit too long.  
"We love you, Hermione. Write us!" said the duo in unison. "I love you too. Goodbye, everyone!" Harry and Ron disapparated, looking depressed, they were late to auror training. She stared at the empty spot where the two constants in her life stood and sighed. She grabbed a handful of floo powder and stepped into the fireplace before she had a chance to throw down the powder Sirius walked towards her and placed a chaste kiss onto her forehead. "Write me, Hermione. And have a wonderful time." She gulped assured him that she would. 

She landed at the international portkey office unsteady from the surprise kiss Sirius had given her moments prior. It was not a romantic gesture, but merely an act of friendship, a kind gesture of goodbye. If I thought I could have ignored my ever-growing crush before. Hermione walked towards the large desk, similar to that of an airport and handed the man working there her ticket, he stamped it and proceeded to point her towards a small group of people to her left. At 3:25, the portkey attendant came through a pair of double doors and gestured for them all to follow her through a tunnel that lead outside, after checking everyone's tickets she handed them what looked like an old umbrella. Everyone grabbed a part of the umbrella, and at precisely 3:30, the familiar uncomfortable pull of the portkey commenced.

As quickly as it started, it was basically over. Hermione landed lightly on her feet, thankful she was one of the few who did not smack face-first into the ground. She was not up for a repeat of the Quidditch World Cup experience. She checked herself and made sure nothing had fallen out of her pockets and waited while the new attendant introduced himself and helped a few people off of the ground.

"Welcome to New York!" Said the attendant, his American accent sounded interesting in her ears. "We hope you had a safe journey, and as we make our way into the building, we have anti-nausea potions waiting for those who need it." 

They followed the man who she learned was named Shane into a rather large building similar to an airport. Deciding to forgo the anti-nausea potion, she waited for the eight other people to finish theirs. Shane lead them towards a line that looked extremely long. "Well, here's where I leave you all." He said cheerily. "This is the line for customs, make sure you have all of your Identification ready and have a wonderful time in New York or wherever it is you'll be going!" with a final wave, he turned and walked away. Hermione tapped her foot impatiently and remembered something. 

"Damn." she muttered, "Shane!" she called running after him. He turned around and raised an eyebrow. "May I help you miss?"

"I have another portkey set to leave for Boston in-" She looked down at her watch. "10 minutes." She was freaking out. "How am I going to get through customs!?" she was exasperated. 

"No worries, Miss, you don't have to go through customs until you get to Boston because you'll be landing at another Portkey station. "Just let me see your papers, and I'll guide you over there." 

Hermione thrust the parchment into his hands and thanked him immensely, he lead her towards portkey gate twelve and sent her on her way. 

When she reached Boston, she came to realize that she would indeed be needing that anti-nausea potion. The building was less crowded than the New York one, and she was glad to see the customs line was only occupied by a handful of people. She got through customs in under five minutes thanks to her Ilvermorny letter and was sent on her way.

As she passed through the doors of the customs office to the front check-in area, she saw someone holding a sign with her name written on it. 

"Are you, Miss Hermione Granger?" Asked the petite woman, she appeared to be in her mid-thirties. Her hair was as red as a Weasley's, and freckles peppered her face. She was very pretty.

"That would be me." Smiled, Hermione. 

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Miss Granger, My name is Professor Marjorie Mayflower. I will be escorting you to Ilvermorny." The woman outstretched her hand, and Hermione shook it.

"It's lovely to meet you as well, Professor, but what about getting my books for this year?" Hermione questioned the woman.

"Once you get sorted, the headmaster will provide you with everything that you could not get across the pond." Marjorie smiled and gestured for Hermione to follow her. There was a courtyard in the middle of the building with a sign above the door that informed people it was the apparition point. Once outside, Professor Mayflower held out her hand so that they could side along apparate to the school. With an intake of breath, they disappeared with a pop.


	5. School Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hermione receives the offer of a lifetime.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was tricky, I wanted to just rush through her school year to get to the real plot.

The school itself was impressive, It looked nothing like Hogwarts, but Hermione could see how her beloved school had inspired this one. She followed Professor Mayflower through the large wooden double doors and entered the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the first time. The inside reminded her a lot of Hogwarts with all the stonework and statues every so often. Her eyes met with a few portraits who smiled at her. They reached a large circular room a few feet from the front doors where a man stood waiting.

"Hello, Miss Granger." Said a tall man who stood in the center of the room. "I am Headmaster Agibert Fontaine, due to your age we thought it prudent to sort you prior to your younger counterparts." He gestured for her to step forward. 

"This is the gordian knot." The headmaster gestured to the symbol engraved into the marble. "Now, once you stand in the center, one of the statues representing each house will react, indicating your house. Do you understand?" Hermione nodded. 

Headmaster Fontaine smiled, he reminded her a bit of Dumbledore, and that was a sad thought. "Now, The Horned Serpent represents the mind. It favors scholars. Wampus represents the body, It favors warriors. Pukwudgie represents the heart, favoring healers. And lastly, Thunderbird which represents the soul. This house favors adventurers." 

The headmaster stepped back, and Hermione stepped into the middle of the gordian knot. Nothing happened for a minute, Hermione was about to say something when Thunderbird began to flap its wings, followed by the yell of the Wampus, the Pukwudgie thrusting its arrow into the air, and the gem at the center of the Horned serpents head began to glow.

"Splendid!" Clapped Agibert Fontaine, "Absolutely splendid, Two houses asking for a student is a common occurrence, but four only happens about once every decade or so. You must be an exceptional witch." 

"Headmaster, what exactly does this mean?" Questioned Hermione.

"Well, Miss Granger, it means you choose whichever house you wish to be in."

Hermione looked at all of the statues thoughtfully, debating the pros and cons between them all. She was ready for adventure, this was the new Hermione although she was sure she would have chosen the horned serpent she changed her mind and said: "Thunderbird, I choose Thunderbird."

"Excellent choice Miss Granger." clapped the headmaster with glee. "The house of adventurers." Hermione smiled at him. "I believe Thunderbird is the equivalent of Gryffindor's house if I am not mistaken." Hermione inwardly sighed. Well, you can take the girl out Gryffindor but not the Gryffindor out of the girl. 

\------

Hermione followed the headmaster to his office to discuss her classes. She would be taking all of the lessons she wanted to take at Hogwarts with a few extra ones based on Magic in the Americas. Unfortunately, she had to take part in club activities, which she found wholly purposeless but chose potions none the less. 

As they discussed her time schedule and what her classes were going to be like. The headmaster summoned her books, Hermione grabbed them and looked at the top book curiously titled Music and You. 

"Headmaster?" She lifted the book and showed it to him. "What's this for?"

Fontaine looked curiously for a moment before recalling what he had forgotten. "Oh, that's right! I regret to inform you, Miss Granger, but all other clubs are full except for Music for the Magical Musician."

"But, Sir! I simply can not be in a music club. I do not know how to play any instrument. Music is not on my agenda for this year nor my future."

"I am sorry Miss Granger, but that is all we have for you, prior students had seniority when choosing their clubs, it would have been unfair to deny those who have been coming here their whole lives to not get the clubs they had worked so hard to get into. Besides, all instruments have been taken; the music club is just in need of a singer."

Hermione was shocked, angry, and downright not a happy camper. A music club, how could that have been the only thing open. And singing nonetheless! This club thing was worth ten percent of her overall grade, and she had to sing in front of people. She had never sung in front of anyone before, and she did not want to start now. Hermione had to admit she understood that they chose people before her for the clubs of choice and realized that she was stuck with it.

-  
Hermione made it to her room after having dinner with the staff, the transfiguration professor reminded her a lot of Snape, and she did not look forward to that class, other than that everything was great. She unpacked her trunk and pulled out the quill from Sirius, it brought tears to her eyes, how something so thoughtful was made for her. She missed him already. She grabbed the gifts from Harry and Ron, opening Ron's first she smiled when she saw it was an assortment of her favorite snacks from Honeydukes. And Harry's was a beautifully framed picture that they had took the week before she left, They all stood happily in the frame her in the middle of Sirius and Harry with Ron on the boy who lived's other side. She placed the picture on her nightstand and began to get to work on reading some of her textbooks.

-o-

The days turned into weeks, and before she knew it, Christmas was around the corner. She had kept in contact with her best friends, including Sirius. She had learned that Sirius had gone traveling the world and would be back for Christmas, She wanted to join them, but the fee's for travel were simply not in her budget as of late.

She had made quite a few friends during her time here, most notably was Angela Willow, A girl who played piano in her Music for the Magical Musician, club. She taught Hermione how to calm her curls into nice wavy ringlets.

Music for the Magical Musician was surprisingly a lot more fun than she had anticipated. Her fellow club members loved her voice and had even signed up their makeshift band to sing at the school's Christmas Ball, which also doubled as a school talent show. Hermione was not sure about that, but she was more outgoing here freer. Not a single person cared about her blood status, she could just be Hermione. 

-o-

The Christmas Ball had been a hit, people cheered for the band and shouted for encores. Hermione was in her element, she found something that rivaled her passion for learning. When she got off the stage, students approached her and praised her, it felt good to be the center of attention, even if she would not admit it out loud.

She danced with a boy whose name she couldn't remember, but he was quite attractive, he had long wavy dark hair and intense eyes. He reminded her of a young Sirius, and it made her heartache a bit. She was still crushing on her best friend's godfather, even without seeing him, other than the occasion he would talk to her via floo call as Harry and Ron spoke to her. She couldn't blame him, He was a man in his thirties, and she was a young woman who just turned nineteen well twenty if you count the use of her Time-Turner in the third year.

When the boy suggested they go somewhere else, she politely refused, it would not be fair to him if she were thinking of someone else the whole time. 

As the Ball came to an end, she was approached by Headmaster Fontaine.  
"There are people who would like to speak with you, Miss Granger."  
She followed him and saw other members of their band talking to a man animatedly. "Here she is, Mr. Thornwick." 

The man was extremely handsome, tall with pointy features not too unlike a Malfoy's. He was dressed to impress in expensive robes. Extending his hand, he flashed a smile. "Pleasure to meet you, Hermione, your bandmates have already told me so much about you." 

She raised an eyebrow and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, as well as Mr. Thornwick." She looked at Angela, who gave her a thumbs up.

"Please call me, Perseus." He chuckled, "Now, let's skip the pleasantries and get to business. We want you." Hermione gasped and looked at him in disgust, "I beg your pardon."

Perseus laughed once again. "I apologize, I work for Dragon Records, the same recording company that manages The Weird Sisters. We would like you to join our label." 

Hermione's eyes went wide. "But what are you doing here?" 

"We come every year to scout talent at various schools, and you have got it." He said confidently. 

"Come on, Hermione! let's do it!" Said Angela. "Yeah, Hermione." agreed Theodore, the boy who played acoustic guitar.

"This is a lot to take in, I don't know what about our exams, its the whole reason I came back to school." She said, unsure.

Perseus Thornwicke looked at the other members of her band as they tried to convince her to sign. He smiled as he saw her resolve begin breaking as the moments wore on. "I heard from your headmaster that you're top of your class. I'm sure we could pull some strings and have you all take your exams by February." He thrust his hand in front of her waiting for her to shake it. 

Hermione looked between her friends and her headmaster, who smiled at her with a twinkle in his eye. "Can we really take our exams in February?" she questioned.

"Why, of course!" Her Headmaster exclaimed. The fellow band members jumped up and down, making her laugh before she reached out and shook Perseus Thornwicks outstretched hand and asked: "Where do we sign?"

**Author's Note:**

> Please like and comment!


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